From Contra Costa Times:

Bingo halls across the state can keep using hundreds of lucrative electronic bingo machines that state Attorney General Jerry Brown has deemed illegal, after a federal judge on Thursday signed a temporary restraining order to halt a state crackdown on the devices.

Following a hearing Thursday in Sacramento, district court Judge John A. Mendez ruled in favor of a leading maker of the electronic games, a pair of charities and two disabled bingo players who argued that the state has misinterpreted the law. They also claim a ban on the games violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by depriving disabled players of a winning chance.

Saying they have “a strong likelihood of success on the merits of their claims,” Mendez set a June 25 hearing and asked to inspect two bingo machines.

The case might have big implications in the battle over the rights to operate gaming devices in California. For years, state authorities have said machines that swap technology for traditional bingo cards are illegal in nontribal hands, but have done little to enforce it. Some of the machines mimic slots, and Indian gaming tribes have pressed for state action, with one tribe threatening to withhold millions in revenue-sharing dollars.

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